'H To He Who Am The Only One'
by Van Der Graaf Generator
(1970)
On the darker side of the Progressive rock genre lie Van Der Graaf Generator, a decidedly different British outfit who were one of the first groups working in the 'rock' idiom to partially eschew the use of the guitar as the leading instrument, instead choosing to replacing it as the main weapon of attack with either squawking saxophones, heavily-treated organs, deeply-toned basses or the wailing vocals of lead-singer and chief lyricist Peter Hammill. Very much the arty upstarts to Pink Floyd or Yes' popular symphonic reading of the genre, Van Der Graaf Generator failed to achieve the kind of commercial success enjoyed by many of their peers, yet they are still, despite their relative inaccessibility, regarded by critics and fans alike as one of the era's most challenging and iconic outfits. The 'classic' Van Der Graaf Generator line-up featured Hammill(vocals, guitar), David Jackson(saxophone), Hugh Banton(organ) and Guy Evans(drums), with all but Jackson initially coming together to play on 'The Aerosol Grey Machine', a 1969 album that was meant to be a Hammill solo record, yet because of various legal wranglings, label interference and contractual stipulations, was released under the Van Der Graaf Generator name. Not exactly a hit record, 'The Aerosol Grey Machine' was a USA-only release and received minimal promotion from Mercury Records. Despite this, however, the group had found an admirer and manager, in that order, in British entrepeneur Tony Stratton-Smith, an avid fan of the emerging new progressive rock sound. After setting up the Charisma label in 1969, Stratton-Smith subsequently made Van Der Graaf Generator his first signing(quickly followed by Genesis) and the group, who had by this point yet to find a settled line-up, were shoehorned into London's trident studio's just before the Christmas holidays of 1969 to record 'The Least We Can Do Is Wave To Each Other', the album regarded by many as the group's debut album proper. It would also be the last Van Der Graaf Generator album to feature both a full five-man line-up and a full-time bassist, with Nic Potter, who had himself replaced original member Keith Ellis a year earlier, eventually leaving the fold midway through the recording sessions for 'H To He Who Am The Only One' and going on to become an in-demand session musician, playing with the likes of Chuck Berry, Steve Swindells, Jeff Beck and fellow Charisma act Rare Bird. Potter's absence left a big gap for the group to fill, and after extensive discussions regarding a replacement, it was eventually agreed that organist Banton would double on bass pedals.
Produced by John Anthony, who had conducted the sessions for 'The Aerosol Grey Machine', and completed in time for a Christmas 1970 release, the physics-themed 'H To He Who Am The Only One' marked another evolutionary step in the group's rapidly developing sound, with longer instrumental sections, a fuller mix and more composed performances from each band member contributing to a dense and powerful overall album. This is manifested in a slight about-change from their previous two efforts, as the guitar is given momentary centre-stage on the brooding two-part mini-epic 'The Emperor In His War Room' thanks to King Crimson's founder and leader Robert Fripp, who adds the distinctive tones of his trusty electric six-string to proceedings, momentarily replacing the sharp saxophones and menacing organ breaks with a less abrasive element. Indeed, the group's softer side(if you could call it that) is briefly-glimpsed on the proceeding track, the maudlin, piano-led ballad-of-sorts 'House With No Door'. Featuring just Banton's understated keyboards, gently-plucked bass and Hammill's carefully-restrained vocals, the album's third track almost harks back to a kind of late-sixties pop-psych style, with the expected blast of discordant instrumental power never materialising as, instead, the song gradually fades into a calm and quiet nothingness. This lull doesn't last long, however, as the opening strains of fan-favourite 'The Emperor In His War Room' rumble into life soon after.
A radical slice of darkly-wrapped post-psychedelia, Van Der Graaf Generator's third album finds the foursome at their most instrumentally-expansive, adding welcome touches of colour to their often hallucinatory music with the addition of flutes, guitars and mellotron's. Although by no means an 'accessible' slice of progressive rock, 'H To He Who Am The Only One' is remarkably less abrasive than their earlier material, blending King Crimson-style orchestral grandeur with their own, deliberately-mysterious, almost avant-garde sound to create a somewhat difficult spin on the symphonic prog style that seeks to almost confront the listener with it's wall-of-squealing-sounds and oblique lyrical content. However, although it may take several listens to fully grasp, 'H To He Who Am The Only One' is an album filled with fascinating moments that showcases both of the group's artistic ambitions and their ability to 'rock out' when need be.
One of the few progressive groups to truly stand alone, Van Der Graaf Generator are purveyors of strange, beautiful and utterly beguiling music that truly has to be heard to be (dis)believed, with this carefully-composed and semi-experimental album the pick of their early works.
Key songs: Killer, House With No Door, The Emperor In His War Room
Produced by John Anthony, who had conducted the sessions for 'The Aerosol Grey Machine', and completed in time for a Christmas 1970 release, the physics-themed 'H To He Who Am The Only One' marked another evolutionary step in the group's rapidly developing sound, with longer instrumental sections, a fuller mix and more composed performances from each band member contributing to a dense and powerful overall album. This is manifested in a slight about-change from their previous two efforts, as the guitar is given momentary centre-stage on the brooding two-part mini-epic 'The Emperor In His War Room' thanks to King Crimson's founder and leader Robert Fripp, who adds the distinctive tones of his trusty electric six-string to proceedings, momentarily replacing the sharp saxophones and menacing organ breaks with a less abrasive element. Indeed, the group's softer side(if you could call it that) is briefly-glimpsed on the proceeding track, the maudlin, piano-led ballad-of-sorts 'House With No Door'. Featuring just Banton's understated keyboards, gently-plucked bass and Hammill's carefully-restrained vocals, the album's third track almost harks back to a kind of late-sixties pop-psych style, with the expected blast of discordant instrumental power never materialising as, instead, the song gradually fades into a calm and quiet nothingness. This lull doesn't last long, however, as the opening strains of fan-favourite 'The Emperor In His War Room' rumble into life soon after.
A radical slice of darkly-wrapped post-psychedelia, Van Der Graaf Generator's third album finds the foursome at their most instrumentally-expansive, adding welcome touches of colour to their often hallucinatory music with the addition of flutes, guitars and mellotron's. Although by no means an 'accessible' slice of progressive rock, 'H To He Who Am The Only One' is remarkably less abrasive than their earlier material, blending King Crimson-style orchestral grandeur with their own, deliberately-mysterious, almost avant-garde sound to create a somewhat difficult spin on the symphonic prog style that seeks to almost confront the listener with it's wall-of-squealing-sounds and oblique lyrical content. However, although it may take several listens to fully grasp, 'H To He Who Am The Only One' is an album filled with fascinating moments that showcases both of the group's artistic ambitions and their ability to 'rock out' when need be.
One of the few progressive groups to truly stand alone, Van Der Graaf Generator are purveyors of strange, beautiful and utterly beguiling music that truly has to be heard to be (dis)believed, with this carefully-composed and semi-experimental album the pick of their early works.
Key songs: Killer, House With No Door, The Emperor In His War Room
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